Closing the gap between circular innovation and investmennt
High-impact circular solutions often struggle to attract funding. Through DEFINITE-CCRI, Circle Economy is helping projects overcome this barrier—moving from ambition to investment.
Real-world results: What changed for 11 circular initiatives
€800,000 in funding secured for circular projects focused on high-impact strategies like reuse and repurposing.
Circular Library Network secured €750,000 in pre-seed investment and grants to scale community-based sharing of household goods.
Tehdassaari Nokia Incubator Hub raised €350,000 to launch a circular innovation hub on a historic Finnish industrial site.
Return2Sender received a €50,000 subsidy to pilot their reusable B2B packaging-as-a-service model.
All 11 supported projects received personalised coaching on business models, due diligence, and pitch development—boosting long-term investment prospects.
The self-evaluation Circularity Tool and video series now help circular ventures across Europe self-assess and prepare for investment.
The gap: Empower circular projects to be investment ready
Circular initiatives built around refuse, reuse, and repurpose often face steeper investor scepticism than conventional models like recycling. Despite their higher impact, these ventures struggle to attract funding due to unfamiliar models, unclear return on investment, or long-term payback. This gap in financing reinforces the linear status quo and slows transition.
What we delivered: Empower circular projects to be investment ready
DEFINITE-CCRI is a collaboration between ICLEI Europe, Circle Economy, Bankers without Boundaries, the City of Ghent and the National Technical University of Athens, funded by the European Union. Our experts guided circular projects through due diligence, strengthened their business cases, and connected them with the right investors. The results speak for themselves: multiple projects have already closed investment, while a self-evaluation tool and accompanying video series now help others do the same—with clarity, confidence, and credibility.
DEFINITE-CCRI shows how targeted support can transform circular projects from promising concepts into investment-ready solutions. If your initiative needs guidance to secure funding and scale, Circle Economy is here to help.
